


parchment paper holds us together

by TheTartWitch



Series: One-shots of AUs [15]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Canon Divergence, Draco gets a tongue-lashing, Gen, Neville's a trans woman, Not explicitly mentioned, The Founders Reborn! au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-07
Updated: 2016-12-07
Packaged: 2018-09-07 03:41:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,951
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8781592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheTartWitch/pseuds/TheTartWitch
Summary: Dudley's letter has red ink.Harry's has green.Hermione's has blue.Neville's has gold.Hogwarts, meet your makers.





	

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Kalilah](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kalilah/gifts).



> For a prompt by Kalilah, in their Ideas for Writers work. Go check it out!
> 
> Upon receiving his Hogwarts letter, Dudley Dursley passes out. When he awakes, he is no longer just Dudley Dursley, but Godric Gryffindor reborn. Horrified by his physical condition and actions up until that point, he quickly implements a diet and training regimen that, along with his major personality change, baffles his parents, cousin, and "friends". In fact, it terrifies his parents and they blame magic for ruining their son. Part of his newfound morals was to demand that Harry be properly fed and clothed, moved into his second bedroom (which Godric cleaned), and treated properly. Vernon and Petunia agree, if only because of his rather frightening show of "accidental" magic. This led to Harry and him coming to a truce (not friendship because Harry is too wary of Dudley falling back into his old personality to trust him). Godric and Harry start to work out together, and things seem to be going great, up until Harry gets his Hogwarts letter, only to pass out and discover that he is Salazar Slytherin reborn.  
> From this point forwards, they are inseparable, as well as extremely excited to meet up with Rowena and Helga again. They meet Rowena (and her parents, Mr. and Mrs. Granger) in Slug & Jiggers Apothecary, where they immediately decide to finish their shopping together. At the end of the day, they have yet to find Helga. Before parting, they decide to meet up on the train.  
> On the train, Helga finds them and is so happy that they are finally all together again. They spend hours in the warded train compartment catching up and planning their next moves, including breaking down the house rivalries. They each get sorted into their house and meet their housemates. In the morning, they put their plan for uniting the houses into action.  
> -You get to choose what Godric's display of "accidental" magic was, who Helga reincarnated as, and what their plan for uniting the houses is. (and their other plans as well)  
> -The twist is, obviously, Dudley being Godric.

Dudley has never seen a letter quite like this, with paper that is yellowing and wrinkled and a wax seal holding it shut. On the back, instead of an address, there is simply brilliant red ink marking out “ _To Whom It May Concern_ ”. He peeks over his shoulder to check for his parents or the freak, but there isn’t anyone in sight.

 _What the hell_ , he thinks, inwardly thrilling at the chance to use one of Piers’ discovered “bad words”, and tears open the flap with his thumb.

Everything goes black before he can even tell what’s inside.

\--

When he wakes up, something feels very different. He recognizes where he is, through what feels like a Memory Membrane, an almost gooey, protective film that slowly dissolves over time, allowing his new and old memories to sort themselves out harmlessly and figure out where everything goes.

A shorter, messy-headed boy with black hair and broken glasses stumbles around the corner from the television room ( _which is a fascinating invention, why hadn’t they thought of that?_ ) and stops, staring at him in confusion and a little fear. “Dudley?” says the boy. “Are you alright?”

 _That’s my new name_ , he realizes, and immediately rejects it as awful. What kind of parents would name their child ‘Dudley’? Also, _that’s Harry, my cousin. Afraid of me because apparently I’ve been an ass my entire life. Damn._

“Fine,” he said quietly, attempting to move his whale blubber into a standing position from where he was laying crumpled on the floor. “Just fell over.”

Harry’s sort of staring at him now, edging away towards the television room again, and Dudley doesn’t stop him. He’s got important things to do, after all, but he’s definitely coming back for his younger cousin.

\--

He jogs laps around the neighborhood, betters his diet with disgust for the food he’d been eating before (it’s no wonder he’s a balloon about to burst), and casts what few charms he remembers for healing around the house. He knows there isn’t an immediate fix to his problem, but he can at least build muscle mass and eat healthier.

When he’s gotten himself back into a relatively good shape, he begins to focus on the other things needing done as well. He knows just as well as Rowena that sometimes the best thing for his mind is making a list of small, simple, compounding things to do on a mental checklist, and so he sits down and thinks.

 _#1: Clear out his old second bedroom so Harry can use it, then corrall the smaller boy into_ **_actually_ ** _using it._

_#2: Take over the cooking. If the state of his new parents is any indication, they need some serious help in the dietary area. Also, Harry has too many chores already. Speaking of,_

_#3: Take over some of Harry’s chores. Spread the work evenly._

_#4: Make sure Harry’s eating. He’s short; perhaps a protein deficiency? Work on this._

\--

It’s immediately obvious who Harry _really_ is. His Avada eyes, while a gift from his mother (Dudley had met her once, before he’d even turned one; she’d been a splendid aunt before Petunia had realized she was there and kicked her out), were the exact shade and shape as Salazar’s. His black hair, if grown out, would be the same as Salazar’s. His quick thought, graceful movements, and inborn mysteriousness matched Godric’s old friend as well.

When Dudley defends his cousin in the hallway one afternoon, a lightbulb shatters above them, sending gold and red sparks showering down on them. In the mirror hanging on the wall, he sees that his eyes have the faintest tint of gold growing in the iris. From her shriek, Petunia sees it too.

“Don’t you touch him!” She screams at Harry, attempting to grab Dudley and hide him away, but Godric easily evades her. Harry is shaking against the far wall, next to the front door, which is the only reason Vernon isn’t throwing anything: he doesn’t want it ending up on the front lawn, drawing the neighbors’s attention to them. “Get your filthy tricks away from my Dudley!”

That does it for Vernon; he stalks forward, arms outstretched for the smaller boy, Dudley blocking his path, but at that moment the mail slit opens with a little _click_ and drops the mail directly into Harry’s lap with a soft _plop_. The boy stares down at this little bit of normalcy, along with everyone else, before Godric sees it. Harry’s letter is in the pile.

He abandons Vernon’s struggles, sending the man pitching forwards into a heap on the floor, to grab Harry’s letter and the boy’s hand. He easily Apparates the two of them to the backyard, where he prompts Harry to open the letter.

He’s prepared for when the boy’s eyes flutter upon slicing open the yellowing paper, and he catches the boy when he topples forwards.

\--

They don’t allow themselves to be separated after that; Petunia and Vernon’s first and only attempt ends in them being attacked by the cutlery from the kitchen. As the beginning of the school year grows closer, they make known their plans to attend Hogwarts and leave the next morning. Salazar’s and Harry’s and Godric’s vaults are still available to them, so they hail the Knight Bus and simply ask that they bill Harry’s vault, leading to the extreme reaction of exclamations and autographing. They put up with it, only because they’re heading to Diagon Alley to get their wizarding supplies again after all this time.

\--

It’s a tricky thing, dual memories. Dudley still exists inside Godric, simply with better manners, habits, and attitude, just the same as Harry still exists within Salazar with more confidence and the knowledge that curiosity is good and to be encouraged. They’re the same people, yet not.

When they hop off the Knight Bus at the entrance to the Leaky Cauldron, they agree to use different names just in case. Life flows smoother when you’re not famous, so they go by Edmund and James respectively and attract little to no attention when Harry smoothes his hair over his scar. They can both feel the menace whispering out of the darn thing; it’s most definitely a curse scar, but those aren’t used on just _anybody_.

\--

They split up: James wants to look at potions ingredients and Edmund heads off to check Gringotts and secure their vaults for them. The goblins are as helpful as they always are, but some of the spying wixen’s mouths gape at the sight of cheerful, attentive, even _kind_ goblin bank attendants.

They buy Enlarged bags for holding their money, and Vanishing Enlarged trunks for their school things. James manages to secure a special type of trunk that becomes a potions-brewing area when opened, and he stocks it with every ingredient he can possibly get his hands on. Edmund slips inside a magical weapons store and comes out with specifically-enchanted knives for them both. According to the stories he heard in the shops, James and Salazar are going to have an interesting few years at their school.

In _Slugs and Jiggers Apothecary_ a girl skips to James’ side and says brightly, “A Slytherin, eh? It’s obvious from the color of your eyes! Plain as punch.” He turns to raise an eyebrow at her and glimpses, tucked deeply and desperately behind a veneer of childishness, Rowena’s fathomless personality. Her Muggle parents are wandering the shop, hopelessly lost and unaware of the wizards watching them from the front counter like a pair of lost ducklings.

“And you - a Ravenclaw! Never has it been more obvious to me, either!” He murmurs to her, making her giggle, and they link arms as they walk to the counter to pay, collecting her parents on the way.

“O-ho, sweethearts, eh?” says the shopkeeper knowingly, tapping the side of his nose, and Rowena’s happy expression fades in an instant, souring into a bitter scowl. She taps the side of the counter with her wand and they watch his register grow chicken’s legs and wings and flutter off, chased by a confused shopkeep.

“This is Edmund, and I am James, Madame Ravenclaw,” Salazar tells Rowena, bowing to her parents who, confused, bow back. Edmund pretends to sweep a cap off his head.

“Hermione,” she returns gracefully, “I’m sure we have much to discuss, don’t we, Sirs Slytherin and Gryffindor?”

And together, they skulk out onto the street and into the traffic of the new Age.

\--

Helga doesn’t join them until the train, wherein she settles down in a pudgy male body beside them on the train and says quietly, “Oh, Lady Ravenclaw, it’s been ages since we spoke,” and she turns with a grin and greets, “Neville Longbottom, isn’t it? Indeed it has, my badger friend.”

James and Edmund nod to her with a pair of easy smiles.

“The gang’s all here,” says Edmund, remembering the saying from a television show, and Hermione laughs because she’s seen that too. Neville and James simply glance at each other in bemusement, because that’s how they are.

The compartment door bangs open but none of them jump. Across the way, Hermione can see James’ wand in a tight little fingertip grip he’d perfected last time, absentmindedly ready for a fight. Underneath the skin, Salazar is roiling like a boat in a sea storm, but on the surface, James is as quietly unassuming as ever.

“They’re saying it all up and down the train, that Harry Potter’s in here. Is it true?” The blonde boy speaking is imperious, with a demanding tone of voice. He glances between Edmund and James with an obviously increasing impatience. “Well? Don’t you know who I am?”

Hermione snorts. “Isn’t it obvious? You’re Draco Malfoy, aren’t you? The Heir of the Malfoy Lordship.” That appears to placate the little brat, who then turns back to the boys.

“Your family sided with Voldemort, didn’t they?” Neville ventures. There isn’t any judgment in her voice, because they’d all seen what effect that had had on his parents: Voldemort, or Tom Riddle, had terrorized the Malfoy family since Abraxus Malfoy first met the man in school. He’d threatened them into compliance, and while that didn’t make their actions _good_ , exactly, at least they didn’t do the awful acts because they enjoyed it.

Malfoy doesn’t seem to see it that way. “You want to make something of it, Longbottom?” He sneers. “My father says -”

“Oh, who cares about that, really?” James interrupts, waving a hand to shut the compartment door behind the blonde. “Now, I’ve heard there’s something of inter-House animosity? The Houses aren’t getting along as they should be?”

Malfoy stares at the small raven-haired boy. “What?” James stares at him. “I mean, um, yes?”

Edmund catches Hermione’s eye and mouths, ‘ _um?_ ’ and she smiles. Their Salazar has always had that effect on people who believe themselves above him. He quite quickly shows them wrong, and then shuts them up.

“Now,” says James, leaning forwards, steepling his fingers, and staring at Malfoy through their cage. The blonde very nearly backs up, before hitting the compartment door and visibly steeling himself. “How are we going to fix that, young Malfoy, with power? Influence? Arrogance?”

Malfoy desperately shakes his head. “No - with, er, with kindness?”

“Exactly.” James smiles so wide it seems to close his eyes, and Malfoy shakes. The door rattles, and there’s vague shouting from the other side, voices rising in a worried spike. “It’ll be a pleasure working with you, Heir Malfoy.”

And with that, the compartment door _snicks_ back open, dropping the blonde on his arse, before _click_ ing shut again.

“Eventful,” says Edmund, and James grins like a devil.

What else would it be?

\--

**Author's Note:**

> Loved this prompt! :) Feel free to send in some, if you have an idea you want to see written!


End file.
